The reviews that I have read are mixed. Some complain of a strong smell but the manufacturer says that if you rinse them and par boil them, there will be no smell.
I have heard about these as well and about the odor too, too chicken to try it, maybe its an acquired taste? I might get the nerve one day, but not too crazy about soy as I am hypo and that seems to be a no-no for us types.
They do have a peculiar smell when you first open the bag. After rinsing them well, the smell is gone, and they have no taste. They are a bit slimy in texture, but I don't find that offensive. I'd rather have that than a mealy texture. Yes, I recommend them. I had them with a stroganoff kind of sauce and really liked it. I will definitely buy them again. I think they would be very good in an asian style noodle dish.
I love them! I actually had them for lunch today, just with marinara sauce and parmesan. I rinse them very thouroughly and boil them for about 5 minutes and the odor disappears. They are more chewy and slimy than regular noodles, but for zero points the trade-off is way worth it!
I've been wondering about these too. Thanks for the positive replies I think I'll buy some this weekend. I LOVE pasta, but the points are so high even on wheat pasta.
I found them in a natural foods store and also in a major supermarket. They are refrigerated, in the section that has tofu and other kinds of Asian noodles.
In a bowl, combine about 2 Tbsp rice vinegar, about 2 Tbsp chopped sushi ginger (the pickled stuff) about 1 Tbsp soy sauce and if you have it, a little bit other kind of Chinese sauce you might like, like hoisin sauce, and a chopped jalapeno, and 3-4 thinly sliced scallions. And about 1/3 cup chopped cilantro.
Let that all marinate for about 15 minutes or so.
Smash up a couple cloves of garlic and saute them in a pan with about a teaspoon of dark sesame oil. Then add the marinated stuff and about 8 oz. sliced mushrooms. You can add other sliced vegetables if you like - carrots and/or celery are good. Then add about a half pound of shrimp. I used the pre-cooked frozen kind. Let it cook for a few minutes and add about 1/4 cup water mixed with about a tablespoon of cornstarch to thicken. Add the well rinsed Shirataki noodles.
I didn't parboil the noodles, but I rinsed them well with hot water.
Parboiling just means you put them in a pot of boiling water for a short time - for noodles like this I would think they mean for a minute or so, but it isn't really necessary.
Last edited by Spinymouse; 01-30-2007 at 12:25 AM.
Reason: I forgot about the cilantro!
I like them alot. The smell isnt overly offensive....just dont stick your nose in the bag, and your fine. Ive tossed mine in a frying pan with a bit of spray butter, and I really like a bit of browning done to them. I find them very filling too. Ive used them any way I would use regular noodles.
If you have a wegmans near you, they carry them now, over by the refridgerated fresh pasta section.
I still haven't been able to find them in the stores I am going to go to whole foods tomorrow which is about 30 minutes away from me. I hope they have them there.
I LOVE them! We can actually get these locally in Fargo. (Go figure!) After I squeeze the liquid out, I put them in a plastic strainer and put this in a bowl and then I microwave this setup for a minute. After taking this out of the microwave, I use a paper towel to squish more liquid through the strainer. Then I add the noodles to a sauce pan with spaghetti sauce and heat this up on low for about 30-45 minutes. The noodles really absorb the flavor of the sauce.
I think the fettuccine noodles have the least rubbery texture. They are nice and thin.